Recipes

Thursday, August 28, 2014

Any auspicious GSB Konkani occasion is incomplete without Godu Phovu. This is also the most common , first in line offering to God during prayers and festive occasions. Even a poor man will make atleast this sweet as his humble offering to God.This particular sweet/ snack/ dessert is also one of my all time personal favorites. You might be thinking that everything on this blog is a favorite of mine. Of course it is! Remember, it is my blog and obviously the first preference is to my favorite things!!:) Coming back to Godu Phovu, this is also healthy and beneficial for growing kids for its energy and especially teenage girls as it is a good source of iron."Godu Phovu " in konkani literally translates to " Sweet Beaten Rice" in English. Basically it is beaten rice that is mixed with a mixture of freshly grated coconut & jaggery and is flavored with cardamom powder. As simple as that! Growing up I would go to the temple and get Pooja Prasadam just to eat this dessert. I could never get enough of it . Now whenever I make this( during festivals), my kids love it and polish it off in no time!

Servings: 6-8

Ingredients:

Method:

In a pot add the jaggery and water and cook it on medium heat until the jaggery has completely dissolved ( takes around 5 minutes). Switch of the flame and let it settle down for 8-10 minutes. Now gently take the top portion of the syrup into another pot. Look for sand/ dirt residue, discard it.

Now heat the syrup again on medium heat until it bubbles and has a nice golden hue.

Mix in the freshly grated coconut and cook for 1-2 minutes. Stir in the cardamom powder and ghee and keep aside to cool down.

Once the able mixture is cooled, mix in the poha( beaten rice) little by little, massaging it thoroughly with your hands. Mix it all until you have a nice a soft homogenous mixture.

Serve by itself or with banana.

Enjoy!

Cooking made easy:

Poha ( beaten rice) is available in several different thicknesses; very thin or nylon poha( used for thin Chivda), thin poha used for everyday regular Phova chutney,Phova Ussli, poha mixed in yogurt etc and thick poha that is used in making poha dishes like Kanda poha, batat Phovu and for poha mixture. These cannot be substituted for each other; the dish will turn into a disaster! For example for Godu Phovu, only thin poha can be used. If thick poha is used, the dish will turn out hard and we will be unable to chew it!